Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to present information collected from existing petroleum exploration boreholes, water wells, and springs in the vicinity of Davis and Lavender Canyons in the Paradox basin, southeastern Utah. This information includes drill-stem test (DST) data, water well and spring locations, and a series of preliminary potentiometric maps constructed for the different hydrogeologic units.

Numerous data sources were researched in an effort to summarize DST information from existing petroleum boreholes, water wells, and springs in the area. All DSTs collected were ranked according to their quality and used to estimate potentiometric levels and other hydraulic parameters such as hydraulic pressure, permeability, and transmissibility.

Using this information, potentiometric maps for the Lower Paleozoic Aquifer, the Pennsylvanian Aquitard, the Permian Aquifer/Aquitard, and the Mesozoic Aquifer (as defined by Paiz and Thackston, this volume) were constructed. In these potentiometric maps, the Mesozoic Aquifer shows a recharge zone in the mountains to the east and a westerly ground-water flow direction. Groundwater flow in the Permian Aquifer/Aquitard is generally to the north and northwest, although perched zones tend to create uncertainty in flow directions’. A lack of flow in the low-permeability strata in the Pennsylvanian Aquitard is evident, while the Lower Paleozoic Aquifer shows flow directions toward the west and southwest.